Amelia Lewis ’21 Earns Science Research Fellowship in Germany

Through the DAAD RISE Fellowship in Germany , second-year student Amelia Lewis will study the relationship between micropollutants and river transport of these sediments at the University of Tübingen in Germany this summer. Funded by the German Federal Foreign Office, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) offers research internships for North American, British, and Irish undergraduate students interested in science and engineering fields.

DAADRise fellows are paired with a host university according to their research interests and work alongside doctoral students. A geology and environmental studies double major at Oberlin, Lewis’ research will complement her continuing geomorphology research in the lab of Amanda Schmidt, associate professor of geology and chair of archaeological studies.

“My research mentor, Amanda Schmidt, was incredibly supportive in encouraging me to apply to this fellowship and explaining how my work at Oberlin is relevant to other summer opportunities,” Lewis says.

Lewis is a member of the Oberlin Student Cooperative Association (OSCA), participates in Barefoot Dialogue, and holds numerous positions at the college. Her roles include working as an admissions tour guide, as the Green Office and Green Room Program intern for the Office of Environmental Sustainability, as well as with the newly forming Design for America chapter at Oberlin.

Upon arriving in Germany, Lewis will enroll in a two-week intensive German language course before embarking on her internship at the University of Tübingen. She will conduct field research, setting up river test sites, and will work in the lab for 10 weeks.

“I am most looking forward to learning and exploring new types of research and ways to think about geomorphology and get perspectives from students studying in different countries,” Lewis says. “I am also looking forward to being able to travel on weekends and explore Europe and Germany.”